Thickness of Skin
by Skyie
Summary: When the sparkmate of Optimus is threatened, her protection comes from an unlikely source. Ironhide objects and sparks fly! Co-Authored with UlurNaga and her story Primary Mechanisms.
1. Chapter 1

**Thickness of Skin**

This is a collaboration from both UlurNaga who brought her story "Primary Mechanisms" to life, and Skyie, who wanted to bring in another character to join in with her characters. Tessa and UlurNaga's characters are her own creation. She has been generous enough to allow Skyie to add her own to play.

The mall was her least favorite place on earth! Parking was crowded and it seemed like no matter where she parked her car there would be another ding on her doors when she came back. The shoppers bustling around didn't add to her already sour mood either.

She refrained from shoving against a teenage boy who carelessly bumped against her as she made her way to her favorite store. Her last client had cost her the last two good pairs of jeans she had and she desperately needed replacements before she looked for new employment.

Fortunately her bank account could support her for several months thanks to her client's generosity when they parted ways. A glowing reference letter also helped. She had really liked this last client, even if she hadn't cared much for the woman's husband. Job security at its finest dealing with a jerk like him! She was glad when he finally went to prison and her client could sleep at night feeling safe for the first time in over a year.

Once she got to the store she hurried to the racks for the jeans. She didn't bother with trying them on since she had shopped her often and knew her size well. She grabbed three pairs of jeans and went to the racks for the new shirts. Examining the new styles with a critical eye she finally decided to splurge and buy two soft cotton and spandex shirts with button down over shirts knowing they would help to hide the tools of her trade. Guns and knives left telltale bulges if one wasn't careful.

While waiting in line to check out she scanned the store out of habit until her eyes came to rest on a petite woman with lovely coppery brown hair which was loosely tied up with curls slipping out. She stared a moment as her mind whirled while she tried to place why this particular figure should draw her attention. Her eyes widened when the realization suddenly came to her. This was the woman the Autobot leader had been seen in public with so often. What was her name again…..? Terry? Tanna…..no, it was Tessa! Rumors were flying around in the underground communities that the proud Autobot and the woman were romantically involved somehow. She couldn't imagine how such a relationship could happen, but it wasn't her place to judge.

She felt herself slip into her observation mode as the smaller woman moved quickly through the store. She clearly was unhappy about shopping for clothing and her hurried movements spoke volumes to Kara's trained eye.

"Can I help you?" The clerk at the checkout's tone of voice was impatient with her. Keeping half an eye on the other woman she put her selections down on the counter. For some reason she sensed the younger woman needed watching over. A well honed sense of impending danger brought her senses into sharp focus. There was only one other shopper in the store and she had automatically assessed her threat level as inconsequential. There was something, or someone else. Years working in the private protection, or bodyguard, service picked up on the subtle undercurrents of danger.

"_Where __are __your __Autobot __friends?__" _She thought to herself as she continued to scan the mall area around the store.

Once the impatient and bored clerk had sloppily bagged her purchases, she casually moved towards to the entrance to the store and she appeared to casually move to the front of the store while keeping the younger woman in focus.

She didn't have to wait more than twenty minutes before the woman selected some casual tank top style shirts and paid for her selections. Kara discreetly followed along while scanning the busy mall shoppers.

Finally, the small woman made her way to an exit when two rough looking men suddenly appeared from outside.

"_Here __we __go. __I __haven__'__t __seen __these __guys __before. __I __wonder __who __hired __them?__" _The look of hired thugs was always unmistakable. Their eyes locked onto their unsuspecting victim.

Tossing her bag aside Kara moved quickly towards the smaller woman's side. She glanced at the surprised look in the other woman's face and said in as reassuring tone as she could, "There are two men, one with a black shirt and one with a grey shirt who are about to try and grab at you. When I tell you to, run back inside the mall and yell for security. I'll make sure they don't follow you."

She turned her back and ignored the sputtering questions. She'd dealt with these types before and knew any show of hesitation or fear would only encourage them. Squaring her shoulders and shifting her weight to the balls of her feet she said in a confidant tone, "You two are looking for more trouble than you can handle right about now." Glancing back at the younger woman's stunned expression she ordered firmly, "Tessa, go back in like I said."

Kara turned back to the two would be assailants and noted their determined expressions, "Last chance guys." She warned softly.

Both men exchanged glances at each other before rushing at her. She didn't look like any kind of threat to two burly men and she knew it. As they advance on her she instantly sized them up for potential weaknesses. The male in the black shirt was leading with his left side and holding his right side back protectively, possibly from an injury. The male in the grey shirt was moving in more of a swagger and clearly had little training. He looked like the type who used brute strength for whatever jobs he had when he subdued a smaller woman.

As the male in the black got within striking range Kara suddenly moved to his right and delivered a side kick to his ribs. Her assessment of his physical state had been correct when he gasped and staggered back several feet. He was out of this fight as he gasped for breath.

The male in the gray shirt grabbed her in a bear hug thinking he would stop her, "That wasn't very nice to do to Brad. Now we're gonna have to pay back that little umph..."

Kara allowed herself a snort of laughter before she brought her leg back to catch his leg and sweep his knee out from under him. She jerked her head back to smash it towards his face. When his arms loosened she grabbed his right wrist and twisted it around in a painful hold.

He went down under her from the lack of his leg support and the painful grip. Wasting no time for her would be assailant to regain his footing; she delivered a forceful kick to his chin. She watched as his eyes glazed over and he collapsed unconscious on the ground.

She spun to look for the male in the black shirt and saw him hurrying out of the mall and into the parking lot, "Oh no you don't" she spat. She wasn't about to let these two men get away with an attack on an unsuspecting woman without giving up some answers.

Glancing back to make sure Tess had drawn the attention of mall security as well as another man with piercing blue eyes and a massively muscled body, she spun and sprinted out into the parking lot to get answers.

It wasn't hard to catch up with the man holding his right side while gasping for air. Grabbing his right arm she spun him towards the ground using an old control hold she's been taught years ago, "Why were you going after the woman?"

The man on the ground tried to shift out from under her and gasped out in pain as she pushed her knee into his spine and jerked his arm upwards painfully, "It's not natural…" he gasped out.

Kara didn't need and explanation for his statement, "Who sent you?" she demanded. There was only so long she could hold him before the cops were called and showed up. She didn't want to answer questions from cops.

"Not your business…Bitch, let me up!" he tried rolling out from under her again and she had to grind her knee into his back harder.

"Stay away from her." It was the only warning she could think of. Tessa wasn't her client and she had no business or interest involving herself with the Autobots. He wasn't going to give up his employer and she didn't have the time to keep him on the ground trying to get answers. She didn't recognize these two from her experience in the rougher aspects of protection services and she wanted to know if there was a new player in town.

The aggressive rumbling of a truck engine interrupted her thought and she looked up to see a massive GMC Topkick lunging towards them. Not wanting to get run over she released the man and shoved herself away. Lunging between the relative safety between two parked cars she watched as the man on the ground frantically tried to crawl away from the revving motor of the massive truck. Whoever was driving the truck had to be furious with the man on the ground. She had no idea what the driver of the truck had to do with this situation but she needed the break to slip away undetected.

Using the distraction of the Topkick and the man on the ground, Kara weaved her way between parked cars until she slid up alongside her own. The Mustang had a custom black paint job and looked unassuming until she turned the key and the custom engine roared to life. Her car was her pride and joy, her baby, and the one thing she made sure was maintained and cared for to the best of her abilities.

Keeping the grumbling engine to a low throttle seemed like an insult to the custom vehicle, but she did in order to avoid attention. Now wasn't the time for her baby to roar to life. It was time to slip away as unnoticed as possible.

She forgot about her bag of recently purchased clothing on the mall floor as she crept away from the mall parking lot.

Cursing her nagging curiosity about the events at the mall she headed home to her office. It was time to make some calls to see who had an issue with the clearly unsuspecting woman.


	2. Intelligence

**To all my reviewers….Wow! Thank you! You guys are the best! **

**To answer the questions about when this story is taking place. This is after _Revenge __of __the __Fallen_ and just before _Dark __Side __of__ the __Moon_. I'm trying to keep in place with Primary Mechanisms around the time in the current story. Now on to answering the questions…."How would anyone know about the Autobots?" I hope I don't disappoint!**

Kara roared up her driveway and parked her Mustang in the garage. After she got out of the sleek car she went to a small electrical panel mounted on the garage wall leading into the house. Her fingers rapidly skimmed over the panel in a seemingly random pattern before she opened the door and went inside the house.

"You sure know how to stir up a show!" Her roommate's voice called from down the hallway.

Stifling a groan of frustration, Kara made her way down the hallway to the shared office area in the house. The room was literally packed from floor to ceiling with computers and monitors. While she prided herself on being able to access most supposedly "secret" information out of the Internet, her roommate was a positive _genius!_

"I wasn't worried about the security cameras when I took out those cheap hired thugs" she was a bit irritated and a bit frustrated. Every time she turned around she seemed to be draw more public attention than she really wanted, "How bad was it this time?"

The woman at the computers finger's seemed to fly over several sets of keyboards as she accessed multiple programs to get the information she wanted, "You got mostly lucky this time…if you don't mind that big guy with the seriously overbuilt chest and arms picking up the bag you dropped." She gave Kara steady look before continuing, "If he's part of the government's _secret_ operations teams, they'll be here asking questions soon." She put a sarcastic emphasis on the government's attempt to keep the alien Autobots top secret.

"How much time do I have?" Kara worried her bottom lip with her teeth in an unconscious nervous habit. Had her unthinking act to keep a seemingly helpless woman from being attacked put her in an unwilling focus of investigation?

"You're credit card is being traced…" She turned back to glower at her, "We talked about this, no police or government involvement!" They had talked about who they would and would not work for. They both had shadowed pasts best kept away from any form of government.

Kara sighed and looked down guiltily, "I know. I didn't mean to get involved….it's just that she seemed so small and fragile. Like she was out all alone. It just bothered me for some reason…." She didn't finish the sentence. They both knew how she felt about women being attacked. It was the reason she did what she did to earn a living.

The other woman shrugged and gave a resigned sigh, "You might as well get ready to answer some questions. I gotta get my systems locked down. Not letting them mess with my work now." She was clearly dismissing her and Kara knew she wouldn't talk with her again until the threat from the soon to be visiting government officials passed.

She let her gaze rest fondly at her roommate. They had met so many years ago when Kara had just begun her career in private protection. Back then Karen had been her client with a very unusual talent. She had unknowingly stumbled across information her company had wanted to keep secret. It had made her a target and she had run blindly until she had crossed Kara's path. Kara had been desperate for clients and while the two worked to gain safety for Karen, an amazing partnership was born. Kara was the one to do the physical work with a client, but Karen was the behind the scenes support which kept her service in high demand.

At the N.E.S.T. base the little mechanic had her hands on her hips as she glowered up at the massive weapons specialist, "You may not trust that woman, but she did jump in and stick her neck out to help me!" Her hand reflexively reached into the pocket of her work coveralls as she fished out her packet of Skittles. At times like these she needed the sugary delight.

The massive Autobot returned the human's glare stare for stare. His loyalty to his Prime would never be challenged, even if the Prime's sparkmate, even if they hadn't made it official yet, chose to become stubborn about her own safety, "How do we know if this squishy femme isn't part of the attack? She sure came along at a conviently good time." His voice had dropped to a deep growl in his irritation.

Tessa had no answer to that question but just _felt_it deep in her bones…..the other woman hadn't been part of the attack. She had been protecting her! When Ironhide had returned to the base with her they had been met by Optimus. She'd barely had time to get out of Ironhide's alt mode before she was grabbed into a fiercely protective embrace. The seemingly unshakable Prime had been angered that someone had _dared_ send an attack against his mate. She'd had to spend the better part of an hour reassuring him she was unharmed before he'd let her out of his arms reach. If she'd thought their relationship had been close before the night of her birthday, she'd been amazed at new intensity.

"_I__'__ve __waited __too __long __to __find __you __and __I __won__'__t __lose __you __now!__"_ His voice had been a passionate growl before he finally had left her to go back to his meeting with Colonel Lennox.

As soon as she had tried getting into her car to go home from the base, Ironhide had told her to stop and said he would be taking her home. That led from their normally playful bickering into a glowering argument.

Being tired and having a headache coming on from the tension and stress made her unusually irritable, "There's no way one of you can spend every minute with me just in case someone tries to come after me again. I won't allow you guys to weaken your defenses just because you think you need to look after me." Having worked with the Cybertronians for over a year made it easy to read their seemingly less expressive body language and faces. Ironhide wasn't going to budge and she was too tired to argue. Turning around she headed back inside the base to the bunk she'd been provided for the nights she'd stayed late working, "It isn't going to work this way." She grumbled.

The large mech straightened up from his crouch down by the stubborn human femme. Had he allowed her to leave the base unprotected Optimus would have had his aft peeled and sold for scrap. The only solution he could think of was guarding her himself. He knew his abilities and had taken on that assignment in the past. He found himself grinding his gears in frustration over today's events.

He hadn't planned on going near the mall since Tessa had her Valiant fixed and running. He would have rather been painted pink and worn fuzzy dice from his rear view mirror than admit that spending the day with her before hadn't been too bad….but he had no plans on repeating the experience. It had been the Prime's anxious glances out of the base which made him decide to go check on the little mechanic. Optimus being distracted was not what any of them needed at a crucial time like this.

He'd arrived at the mall in time to see Tessa walking out with another woman quickly approaching her from behind. When Tessa had fled back into the mall calling for help he'd projected his holoform into the crowd near her side. He hadn't cared about the startled and wary glances he got from the humans surrounding her, his only thought had been ensuring her safety.

He could tell the woman fighting the two men hadn't needed his help and he chose the diversion to drag Tessa out to his alt form and safety. Once she was locked inside he had turned his attention to her would be attacker being held down on the ground.

'Who sent you?" he heard the woman holding him down demand. When the man refused to answer he felt his already irritated temper flare. His lunging rush towards the man had only served to cause the woman to let him go and slip away.

He had grabbed the man in his holoform and held him up into the air by the front of his shirt with ease, "Tell whoever sent you that she's off limits. Next time someone gets more than bruises." It was the strongest threat he could make. Optimus has been clear in his orders that no humans were to be harmed.

When he returned back to his alt form he realized Tessa was trying to open his door to get out, "What are you doing?" He hadn't meant to shout at her and felt bad about the watering he could see in her widening eyes.

"I was going to get the clothes she left. It doesn't seem right that she should lose what she just bought because of me." Her voice had been almost timid for the first time since he'd known her.

Barely hiding his irritation, he had retrieved the clothing and had stormed back to get his Prime's mate to safety before the human law enforcement showed up to ask unwanted questions.

His thoughts were interrupted by recently promoted Colonel Lennox, "Our mystery woman's had at least three aliases and four different mailing addresses for her credit card. We've got an address that seems the most plausible. Epps and I were going to head out there and see if we can get some answers…." He let the invitation unspoken. The government had been clear on its policy towards the civilian workers. No military personnel were going to be assigned to any civilians. Epps and Lennox were doing this on their own and Ironhide could join them or not, it was his choice.

"I want some answers from her as well." He grumbled and shifted down to the Topkick form. His doors swung open in a silent invitation for the soldiers to get in.

Once he was inside the massive truck, William Lennox gave an address several miles out of town, "I hope this pans out. Its like this woman has been trying to hide." The tone of his voice communicated his irritation.

Forty minutes later the Topkick and soldiers pulled up in front of a simple looking farm house nestled in a small acreage. The house was two stories with an attached garage and large porch which seemed to wrap around the entire exterior of the lower level. There was a clearly defined pathway paved by flat stones which lead from the driveway to the front porch and door.

The two soldiers had barely begun walking up the pathway when the front door opened and the woman from the mall stepped outside. Her voice was steady and calm when she greeted them, "I wondered how long it would take you to get here." The slight uplifting corners of her lips in a soft smile took any sting out of her words.

The Colonel stopped at the edge of the porch to study the woman. She was of a medium height and build as the mall video had shown. What the video hadn't shown was the mass of rich dark brown hair that fell across her shoulders down to her mid back. Her light brown eyes met his in a calmly confident and unflinching gaze. He had the impression that this woman wasn't the kind to be easily intimidated. After a moment of mutual silence he asked, "You know why we're here?"

The woman's eyes gave away nothing, "You want to know about the mall." She left out her involvement.

"You took a risk for someone you didn't know." He left off the part about who Tessa was. She was going to have to fill in the blanks with an explanation. He wanted to know what she knew.

Kara kept her expression carefully neutral while inwardly suppressing a smirk. She didn't know much about military uniform insignias, but the dark haired man standing in front of her in his decorated and neatly pressed uniform carried himself with an air of authority. He was clearly the type of man accustomed to giving orders and having them followed without question or hesitation. She'd been debating on how much she was willing to share when the government was going to show up and she still hadn't decided.

Suddenly the same man she remembered seeing from the mall got out of the Topkick. She couldn't help but mentally size him up as he approached the steps to her porch. While he may not have been as tall as the men from the military, he was literally _bulging_ with muscle. His biceps had to have been as thick as her legs and his chest was easily double the size of the soldiers next to him. His eyes were a piercing blue with a scar over his right eye which added a fierceness to his glower, "How did you know Tessa's name and how did you know those men were going to attack her." He was direct and to the point in his questions.

Kara was taken aback but the sudden abruptness of the questions but in a way relieved. She hated having to dance around a point. Stepping back she opened her front door and motioned for the men to follow her inside. The massive tank of a man was the first one to come inside which didn't surprise her. She sensed he wouldn't hesitate to charge forward into anything. Her only confusion was his lack of uniform. Who was he to the current group of soldiers?

She went into the kitchen where Karen had left a laptop with several files full of data to show to the soldiers. Karen hadn't been happy about disclosing so much information back to the military until Kara had reminded her that she would have to come up with _something_ or risk a full military investigation.

Turning the laptop on she opened up the files on the Autobot intelligence, "I know you all think you've kept the Autobots top secret but I gotta tell you that you've failed…..miserably." She spun the computer around to the ranking soldier, "In this day and age everyone has cell phone recorders, private and business surveillance and numerous ways to hack into many so called secure networks." As the soldier scanned through the files with a stunned look of disbelief she continued, "You've also had those _public_ battles with the other guys, the Decepticons. Did you really think the public bought the story about Mission City? Shanghai? Egypt? The broadcast looking for the Sam Witwicky guy?" There's only so many stories you can feed the public before people begin paying closer attention."

She looked over to the huge man, "As to Tessa…..There are only so many times a girl can be seen in public driving a well know semi before she lands on the radar so to speak." Seeing the massive man's frown deepening into a glower she added, "Once the public knew about her it didn't take long for someone to start hacking her cell phone calls. I think that was just a vile breach of her privacy, but others won't hesitate to go to extreme measures in trying to learn more about the Autobots and anyone connected with them."

Lennox looked through the video and still photographs on the laptop with a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, "How widespread is this….?" He didn't want to label what he'd just seen as legitimate information.

"There are several groups out there dedicating their whole existence to proving the government's covering up the Autobots." She was beginning to feel bad for being the one to break the news and just hoped they didn't decide to take out any backlash on her as the messenger.

While Lennox scanned through the files on the computer the second soldier asked, "So if you knew all about Tessa and so much about the Autobots, who were those guys at the mall?"

Kara grimaced before answering, "I've been looking for that information since I got home. I've put out a lot of questions about them and no one is talking." When they continued to stare at her she added, "Look, I don't know how information is gained in the military, but out here we have our own networks. Most information can be gained for the right price or favor. I can't find anyone willing to even _admit_ they might know about someone wanting to go after her. That really bothers me." It actually scared the hell out of her but she wasn't willing to admit that much.

"So you're saying you just happened to see these two guys and somehow knew they planned on going after Tessa, and you decided to step in out of the goodness of your heart?" The sarcastic tone from the tank, as she'd started to think of the massively built man, was unmistakable.

Instead of taking the bait, she gave him a blank and calm look. "I've been in the private protection service for going on ten years now, which is a long time for anyone in my profession. You learn how to spot a set up and hit, your clients' safety depends on it.

The dark haired soldier finally looked up from the laptop, "Who are you?"

With a smile and a genuine laugh Kara answered, "I'm Kara Shepherd and my business is Shepherd Protection Services." She stuck out her hand in a clear invitation to return the greeting.

The soldier hesitated briefly before taking her hand in a handshake, "Colonel Lennox, United States Air Force, Special Forces….and Commander of N.E.S.T. operations." He glanced back at the stunned looking black soldier with him, "Robert Epps" and pointed to the silent tank of a man, "Ironhide."

Kara's eyes widened. She had expected a visit from some government official, but the name of Ironhide was an Autobot name, "You…You are….?" She stammered.

This time the massive man looked almost smug as he crossed his arms over his broad chest, "Yeah, I am."

Kara couldn't believe it. Wouldn't believe it. Standing in her house was an Autobot! Her carefully trained eye had entirely missed the clues. His sudden appearance out of nowhere, his unusually muscled form without a uniform and the eerily intense blue eyes. She felt herself staggering backwards as her head started spinning.

"Man, I hope this one doesn't pass out too!" was all she heard before she sat down heavily on her couch and focused on taking deep breaths.


	3. Keeping men out of it

**Another BIG thank you for all the reviews….and an even bigger apology for not updating sooner…Megatron cursed me with a cold for writing a story that wasn't all about him….**

After a couple of minutes of having her ears buzz and head swim, Kara was able to look up at the three men….well, two men and one Autobot who were staring at her, "I'm not the passing out kind."

Lennox hid a smirk. Her face had gone quite a bit whiter and he could still see her snatching quick glances at Ironhide in an attempt not to stare, "Glad to hear it." He closed the lid on the laptop but left his hand on the top, "What are you planning to do with this?"

Shaking her head in slightly disgusted disbelief Kara answered, "I'm not planning to _do_ anything with it. This isn't really anything new and it really doesn't matter much to me anyway." She smirked a bit before adding, "Well, not unless you guys start messing with any of my clients, but in that case I don't know that there would be a lot I could do about it." The thought of her trying to protect one of her clients from a massive alien robotic being struck her unusual sense of humor as being funny. She'd been told by more than one client that her sense of humor was strange and she found humor in the most unusual situations.

Picking up the laptop from the counter Lennox gave the smiling woman a stern look, "The Autobots came to us in friendship and have protected us numerous times. This isn't something to joke about."

Kara shook her head again, "I'm not joking about them and I respect your need for secrecy. Was there anything else?"

"You will stay away from Tessa." It was a sternly worded order from the massive Autobot.

That order irritated her. It wasn't like she had any plans to continue this situation with the Autobots, the government, or any humans associated with them. She had acted on instinct and was now being spoken to like some soldier, "I'm sorry. I didn't see you there stopping those guys."

If it were possible, she thought she saw the massive chest and arms on the holoform get even bigger as he tensed. She could tell she'd really pissed him off with that crack and then realized in a way he had been there. At least at the end when she had the guy pinned on the ground, "I didn't appreciate you nearly running me over either. Can't you tell where that big bumper of yours ends?"

Walking to her front door she jerked it open harder than she intended causing it to nearly bounce off the opposite wall, "I've given you your answers which is frankly more than you really deserved." She pointed towards the truck parked on her driveway, "Colonel, it was nice meeting you, but its time you take your rude _secret_ out of my house and leave."

Epps winced at her tone of voice. No one had ever insulted Ironhide like this coolly confident woman had just done. She was either very brave or had no idea just how fast the weapons specialist was willing to get into a fight when provoked, "Come on 'Hide. We got what we came here for." He hoped he could get him outside before this got any worse.

Ironhide felt his teeth in the holoform grinding together as he started to leave and it only irritated him more. Damn Ratchet for continually _updating_ their holoforms! The older mech said it was to help them better blend in and interact with the humans. He'd wanted to refuse the updates but Optimus wouldn't allow it. Now he was stuck _feeling_ his holoform's teeth grinding! The floor nearly shook from the force as he pounded out of the house to his alt form. Let Lennox deal with this squishy. He was content that she wouldn't be posing any threat to Tessa.

"Ironhide's not normally this hard to get along with. He's just touchy where Tessa's concerned." Lennox apologized. He and Ironhide had become friends during all the battles they'd fought together and this rude behavior towards someone who hadn't done anything against them was uncomfortably embarrassing. Hearing the engine on the truck outside revving he held up the laptop, "You know I have to take this?"

"That's why I had it for you."

Lennox and Epps both hurried out to the impatient Topkick. They were barely inside before the tires were spinning as he rapidly left the driveway. It was going to be a rough drive back to base.

When Tessa saw Ironhide come speeding across the tarmac towards the converted hangar she could tell he was angry. He slammed to a skidding stop and both of his doors swung open in a clear order for the soldiers sitting inside to get out. Once the two soldiers had hastily jumped out he slammed his doors shut and sped away.

"What in the world happened?"

Lennox looked a bit shaken from the aggressive drive back to base, "The Autobots are hardly as secret as we've been trying to keep them. The woman who helped you gave us a lot of video clips and photographs of us, the Autobots and you." His face was clearly lined with worry as he turned towards the offices, "I'll be briefing General Morshower."

Tessa felt her stomach turn a bit at the thought of the times she'd been out with Optimus in either his alt or holoform. They had shared many close moments together like all couples do, except now she knew that in all likelihood a fair number of those moments together had probably been watched and recorded. It didn't embarrass her. Nothing she and Optimus did was anything to be embarrassed about. But it wasn't anyone else's business what they did! It angered her and she found herself outside the hangar and sitting in the driver seat of her car before she knew it.

"Tessa?"

She jumped and turned around. Optimus was standing next to her and she had been too self absorbed to hear his approach. Angry tears blurred her eyes as she looked up, "You heard?"

The familiar whirring and metallic shifting as the massive Autobot leader shifted into his alt form somehow calmed her. The massive semi rumbled close to her and the driver's door opened, "I think it's time for us to go for a drive" His deep voice came reassuringly from the stereo speakers.

There was no place she felt more secure than with him and she eagerly climbed inside. The door closed and the seatbelt closed around her in a firm but gentle hold. She shut her eyes and let her head fall back into the headrest as he took them away from the base.

"It was only a matter of time before we were discovered."

Her lips quirked up a bit, "The Autobots or us?"

"The Autobots." She felt the seat belt snug a bit on her for a moment before he added, "I am proud of our relationship and you know I've never concerned myself over anyone's, mech or human, thoughts." There was a pause before he added, "But I worry now more for your safety."

Tessa felt a cold wave a panic start. What was he saying?

"You aren't saying we shouldn't be together?"

She barely finished the question before the massive semi's brakes locked and he skidded to a harsh stop. An electric tingling filled the air and she suddenly found herself being lifted from the seat and into a nearly crushing embrace.

"I don't want you to ever think that!" His voice was strained with emotion and his hands were running over her back and arms in an effort to soothe both of them.

She allowed herself to be held and wrapped him in a tight embrace. Her cybertron lover's feelings ran deep and she realized any threat to their relationship set off very protective and possessive instincts. She hadn't initially understood the intensity of the emotions and feelings Optimus had expressed towards her until she'd worked up the nerve to ask Ratchet. The older mech had patiently explained to her that Cybertronians very rarely found their ideal match which would become their sparkmate. A sparkmate bond went beyond physical interfacing. The threat of losing a sparkmate could send a mech into a protective rage which went beyond conscious thought or control.

"The attack on you at the mall. This is the second time a human has attacked you in a public place." He didn't have to state the obvious, she was becoming a target.

The little mechanic burrowed closer into the proud leader's arms allowing herself to relax knowing no harm could ever come to her while she was with him. Slowly, a plan formed in her mind. Tonight she was spending with the love of her life. Tomorrow she was taking matters into her own hands.

Kara grimace as she pulled her car back into the parking lot of the mall. Thanks to the attack on the Autobot's human she had lost her purchases from two days ago.

"Here we go again." She grumbled as she parked and got out of her car. Out of reflexive habit she scanned the parking lot around her before she locked the car and walked into the mall.

As she approached the clothing store she was amazed to see the woman who had caused her so much trouble. She was sitting on a bench with a bag on the floor between her feet looking around the mall.

"Looking for someone?" Kara grumbled at her. She was met with a bright smile and the bag being thrust at her.

"I was. You. You had to leave your clothes behind when you stopped those guys from grabbing me." When Kara didn't take the clothes she added, "And I wanted to thank you for what you did."

The hopeful eyes on the smaller woman brought out a smile from Kara's stern glare, "Are you always this cheerful?" she finally took the bag of clothes.

"I try." Tessa's amber eyes looked into the older woman's golden brown eyes in a searching stare, "You didn't have to help me."

"No, I didn't." Kara glanced around the mall noting the passing shoppers, "But that's not all you wanted to ask me about. Am I right?"

Another smile met her question, "You are perceptive and I did want to ask you…What do you think you could do for me in my….uh….unique situation."

"What about the tank?"

"Who?"

Kara crossed her arms over her chest, "You know, the big guy who was with you at the mall? He stopped by my house yesterday with the military guys and told me in no uncertain terms that I was supposed to stay away from you." Her voice held unspoken disgust.

The little mechanic's mouth hung open a moment before she burst out laughing, "The tank? You called Ironhide a tank? Oh I bet that pissed him off!" she laughed a moment or two before she calmed down, "Don't worry about him. He's just protective of me, kinda like an older brother. Once he realizes you are looking out for me he'll calm down."

An uncomfortable silence stretched between them before she continued, "You can help me out…..right?"

The older woman sighed and took the younger woman's arm and led her towards a secluded corner, "Look. You need to understand some things. First, this isn't like some Hollywood bodyguard movie. I don't spend 24 hours a day waiting for someone to attack you. It just doesn't work that way. With you spending time on a military base I can't be with you all the time. And there's also the time you spend off base with you…uh….friend." The last part was awkward since she wasn't sure exactly what to call a alien robot's relationship with the other woman.

Rubbing a hand along the back of her neck in an unconscious display of stress she continued, "In this situation I think the best course of action is for me to work on your skills for recognizing a threat before it actually gets to you. I can also teach you ways to get away if you are in a bad situation."

She stared at the smaller woman, "I take it you won't tell the Autobots about this?"

"Not for a while. If Ironhide finds out too soon he's likely to blow a gasket….so to speak." She looked uncomfortable. She wasn't the type to keep secrets and this seemed like a drastic measure.

"I don't work cheap." Even to Kara's ears her voice sounded reigned. She knew she was going to do this, regardless of the costs.

"They've been paying me pretty good and I kinda hoped we could work something out." Tessa wasn't about to plead. The confident woman standing in front of her would have to make her own decisions.

Looking around the mall Kara weighed the risks. She could help the younger woman learn a lot about watching out for herself. The risks came with getting herself involved with the Autobots and that was something she wasn't sure she wanted to do. Her sharp memory recalled the two men who had been waiting for Tessa at the entrance to the mall. If it wasn't them, it would be someone else. She still hadn't been able to find out who was responsible for those men and why they had been sent. The whole situation bothered and challenged her and she had never been one to back away from a challenge.

"Ok. We'll do this but you follow my rules. It won't be easy and I'll push you. No whining or quitting on me or I walk away. Understood?" She noted with grudging respect the other woman's even gaze. This one wouldn't be a quitter.

Tessa held out her hand and shook Kara's hand in a firm handshake, "Understood."

"Ok. Tomorrow night after you get off work I'll meet you at your house. I want to go over some home security."

"I'll see you there."

**To all my readers; I'm sorry this chapter has taken so long. For some reason it was tough to come up with the meeting between Tessa and Kara. Rest assured…The excitement is about to begin!**


	4. Learning to dance and fly

**Well…..After that last chapter I think it's time to get into some action! Thank you to all the reviewers. You are the best and a great inspiration to write. Hopefully the upcoming holiday season will allow me some extra time to keep the chapters coming.**

Kara sat parked in her car in front of Tessa's house staring in disbelief. She could see that the front door was misaligned and knew without even trying to get inside that the door would stick at some point on the frame. The windows were of an older wood style and while she could see all the screens were intact she wondered about all the locks. Would they jam up or allow easy access?

The front lawn was what amazed her the most. There were weeds choking out what once might have been grass making it obvious that the younger woman had little spare time to deal with gardening.

With a resigned sigh she got out of her car with a clipboard in hand to walk the exterior of the house and get an idea of the overall security risks. As she walked up the driveway she glanced over at the weed filled lawn and stopped and gave a short snort of amusement. There were tire tracks in the yard! If she hadn't known the connection between her newest client and the Autobots she would have thought the younger woman had no concern for the condition of her property. As it was the tire tracks leading up to one of the front upper level windows left little doubt as to which would be a bedroom window.

The sudden image of an Autobot holoform trying to sneak inside the house from an open window left her snickering with laughter as she started to walk round the property. She tugged on doors and pushed up on windows and noted with disapproval that one of the back windows slid open. Once her inspection was complete she went back to her car to wait.

Tessa was able to say a brief goodbye to Optimus before she hurriedly left to go home for the night. She was excited and anxious about her official meeting with her new _Protective Services_ agent as Kara referred to their agreement. She knew there were going to have to be some changes around her house and wondered how extensive they would have to be and what her landlord would be willing to help out with. Considering how lax he had been with her front door sticking she figured he wouldn't be much, if any, help.

As she pulled up to her driveway her eyes were immediately drawn to a black Ford Mustang Boss 429 parked on the road across the street. The car was sleek and clean and was clearly customized. While anyone else might only see a custom paint job, tinted windows and custom wheels, her mechanics eye noted the slightly different set of the wheel base and exhaust. Someone had taken a great deal of care to keep the look of the Mustang while undoubtedly changing it up for speed.

As she parked her Valiant she saw Kara open the driver's door of the Mustang and step out. She was holding a clipboard and looked all business. She knew they had work to do but she wanted to see what Kara had done to her car. She hurriedly jumped out of her can and walked over to the Mustang, "I have to see what you've done with this car!" she couldn't keep the eagerness out of her voice.

The little mechanic's eagerness to inspect her "baby" sent a warm thrill in Kara's heart. Most men she encountered had no clue about her car and having someone else understand the work she'd done sparked a feeling of a kindred spirit.

She popped the hood and allowed Tessa to take a look, "Ford did a great job in a lot of their Mustangs but messed up with these Boss'. They could hold the road and maneuver like crazy, but the engines just sucked. It took me some careful work and planning to squeeze this engine and transmission into my baby. She'll fly if you gave her wings."

Tessa stared into the engine compartment with a mixture of surprise and delight while her trained eye spotting the mix of customized parts to create a unique and very powerful package. She had no doubt of Kara's claim, "Have you track tested her?" to anyone else the question might be rude but she had little doubt that this car had seen some serious work."

Smiling with pride Kara gently pushed down the hood, "Every time something new has been added she goes out. I don't have much use for power if it doesn't perform." She eyed Tessa's Valiant, "Unless I miss my guess I'm betting that little ride of yours can get out and move with the best." She hadn't missed the clean and throaty sound of the Valiant's engine and had no doubts as to the speed hidden under the hood.

With an answering grin Tessa assured her, "My Vali will run with the best."

"Good. That will make one part of this a lot easier." Kara made a gesture towards the house, "This will be another matter."

Tessa cringed. She knew the house needed some work and between her recently busy life and a lazy landlord the house maintenance had lapsed, "How bad was it?"

"Well, If it wasn't for the sticking front door I'd say you'd have better luck keeping a mouse out than someone trying to sneak in." She leveled a stern look at the younger woman, "And leaving a window unlocked is the same as leaving a door unlocked."

"That lock hasn't worked for at least a year." Even to her own ears it sounded like an excuse and it made her uncomfortable. She cringed, "I hope this doesn't mean you're going to install a security system."

Kara smiled at the other woman's uncomfortable look, "No. But we will be going to the hardware store. It's time to do some repairs." She had had this discussion with numerous clients and was typically met with disbelief when she said she wasn't going to recommend an alarm system.

"No security alarm?"

"Nope. A security system relies on electricity from an external source which can be interrupted and tampered with which can train you into a false sense of security and complacency. It also relies on monitoring company which has to first notice an alarm and then verify the source before calling for police. That all takes too much time and you could be in serious trouble by then."

Kara motioned for Tessa to go inside and hid a grimace as the smaller woman had to shove hard against the sticking front door. Once they were inside she glanced around. The house was orderly without excessive clutter which would make this part of her job easier.

Setting the clipboard down she studied the other woman a moment before she said, "I want you to be able to recognize a dangerous situation _before_ it's too late for you to do anything about it. Your house needs to be a safe place to be inside while still allowing you a fast exit if you need to get out." She pointed towards the Valiant parked on the driveway, "Keep your car maintained and with no less than three quarters of a tank of gas at all times. You won't know when you'll need it and running out of gas in an emergency is the last thing you need."

She began walking around the house to check the windows and kept talking as she went, "I'm going to start you on some stretching and we'll go over some basic self defense. I won't throw anything complex at you right now. Just pay attention and practice. I also want to work with you on driving."

"I get the self defense and home security, but what about my driving? The Vali is fast and if I can get to her I can outrun just about anything unless it's powered by energon."

Kara gave the younger woman a knowing smirk, "I have absolutely no doubt that your car is fast. What I'm after is making sure you can handle it in all kinds of driving conditions. I'm talking about rain, dirt, hard corners and even reverse if needed. We're talking about the best defensive driving you'll ever need. Speed alone won't do you much good if you can't keep the tires on the ground." She continued her inspection in silence.

Tessa took the opportunity to go change clothes and scrub some of the dirt off her hands. It was a reflexively busy habit but the other woman's expectations of her bothered her a bit. She wasn't sure what she was about to get into but trusted Kara's experience.

"Don't worry. It's not as hard as it seems. It's just learning what to do and when. For each action someone takes either towards or against you I'll show you options you will have and what each option will allow you to do from then. I call it learning to dance."

Recalling her earlier failed attempts at any coordinated dance efforts Tessa grimaced, "I should warn you I really don't know how to dance."

"Don't worry; you'll be amazed at how fast you'll learn. Let's go take a drive. It's time to take your first lesson in flight." Her eyes had a barely concealed gleam of excitement.

Tessa followed the other woman out of the house and noted for the first time how fluid her movements were. She was alert but relaxed and moved with a graceful efficiency. As they stepped away from the front door she expected that she was going to be a passenger in the Mustang and almost walked past the other woman who had circled around the Valiant to wait at the passenger side door.

"You won't learn much if I do the driving." There was a hidden laughter in her voice.

Feeling her cheeks heat with embarrassment Tessa quickly climbed into the driver's seat, "You better hold on." She challenged.

When Kara was belted in the passenger seat Tessa turned the key and felt her little Valiant rumble to life. Kara wasn't the only one who had a little something extra under the hood of her car. After backing out onto the street she turned on her stereo, cranked up the volume and hit the gas.

Kara sat back into the passenger seat and hid her smile. Her carefully worded challenge had worked and now she could see what the other woman knew about driving. As they tore through town she kept her face impassive knowing it would only spur the other woman on. She really liked the bright energy of the little mechanic and was beginning to see how people could be drawn close to her.

Once they reached the hardware store and parked in a parking spot Kara couldn't hide her laughter. She burst out laughing and gave the younger woman an amused look, "Not too bad. You've got a lot of the basics down. The rest won't be hard for you to pick up."

"Not bad? We made it here in record time!"

"The time alone wasn't my point. It's _how_ you made it here so fast. Like I said, you're a natural and picking the rest up will be a snap for you."

Kara started walking into the hardware store, "Come on. Let's get some shopping done." She was still laughing.

Her laughter was contagious and Tessa found that she couldn't get upset with her. She smiled and rushed to follow her new found teacher inside.

Once they were inside the store Kara made quick work of picking out locks, screws, door plates and other supplies. Their shopping was done quickly and with much less of a cost than Tessa would have imagined.

"If this is all it took to help make my house so secure then why do people pay so much for expensive alarms and security systems?"

"Some people just don't want to take on the responsibility for their own safety. They think that all they have to do is hire some company to put fancy sensors on their doors and windows and suddenly all their stuff is safe. Typically all an alarm company is good for is to call the police to let the homeowner know they need to call their homeowners insurance. Alarms go off all the time and it just takes too long from the time someone breaks in to the time the cops are called and can get to the house."

As they got back in the car Kara looked over at Tessa, "Ok. Now time for lesson in driving number one. Put both of you hands on the wheel and keep them there. Never let them cross over each other."

The instructions were so basic Tessa felt somewhat insulted. She grabbed the wheel and looked over at her passenger, "Now what?"

Noting that her student's hands were now in the correct position Kara continued, "Keep your hands there until I tell you to move them. Next we are going to work on how you brake and accelerate. I'm going to start off by telling you when to accelerate and when to brake. It's going to feel forced and awkward at first but it's getting you into a new way of handling a car."

They drove home with Kara giving directions and Tessa paying close attention. There were times when Tessa wanted to brake sooner or accelerate sooner and Kara patiently correcting her and reminding her to keep her hands on the steering wheel. The drive was strained and the car lurched forward and braked roughly as Tessa fought against her old driving habits as she tried to absorb _why_ she was being told to drive the way she was.

Finally, in frustration she pulled to the side of the road, "I thought you said I was a natural? This feels like the first day I ever sat behind the wheel! Why the changes? Why should it matter when I hit the gas or breaks? Why are you making me turn the way I'm turning now?"

Kara unbuckled her seatbelt, "Took you long enough to ask! Trade me places and I'll show you."

Once they had switched seats and Tessa had her seatbelt on Kara told her, "In defensive and high speed driving there is a way to set yourself up to go into corners and maneuver your car to your best advantage. Let me show you what your car can do."

Tessa was relaxed up until the car went from being parked on the side of the road and then started forward. The rest was an adrenaline filled rush as the Valiant seemed to be shot out of a cannon. The car seemed to hug the corners and maneuvered in ways she was sure she hadn't imagined her little car could move. Once they reached her street Kara spun the car around and did an impressive high speed display of precise backing until they parked back on her driveway.

After Kara turned the car off she looked at her passenger to gauge her reaction. She hadn't held much back and hoped she hadn't terrified her new student. She was relieved to see a beaming smile and an excited glint in the other woman's eyes, "I get it now! Let's trade places; I can't wait to try that!"

"I thought you would once you saw it. It's all about controlling the wheels and keeping them in contact with the ground at all times. You don't want the skidding if you can avoid at because then you are at the mercy of the weight of your car and the force of the speed when you started the skid." She got out of the car with the bag of supplies, "Let's roll up our sleeves and then we'll work on getting you to move as good as your car." It was a gentle reminder that there was work to be done.

**Ohhhhh! That was just so fun to write! I hope she doesn't get caught practicing!**


	5. Work and Play

**AN: The last couple of chapters were getting the "stage set" to show how Kara's character fit in the Primary Mechanisms storyline. From here on there will be some differences in the two stories since not all of the ideas I've had for my story fit in exactly with that story. That's the beauty of fan fiction though . Enjoy!**

Kara finished screwing in the last screw on Tessa's new front door deadbolt plate and sat back with a grimace. She had begun to notice new aches after bending over for long periods of time and had even heard her knee crack a time or two. She hadn't been able to charge the little mechanic nearly as much as she should have and knew she was in no position to be giving away her work for free. She wasn't ready to quit her job yet, but she didn't need to take on such a risky job with so little compensation. The problem was that despite her stern business logic she found that she really liked Tessa. The younger woman's easy smile and refreshing honesty made her a joy to be around and she just couldn't bring herself to ignore what was going on around her.

She had been spending hours working through her Internet and underground connections and the only thing she'd learned was that someone wanted Tessa and was offering top dollar to bring her in. Once Kara's name had come up as Tessa's protection the numbers of would be takers for the job had decreased significantly. She had earned her reputation for ruthless efficiency when it came to serving her clients and anyone who had crossed her had been dealt with harshly. Her business had a brutal underside that the public wasn't aware of and the police only saw the aftermath when the dust settled.

It had taken her several weeks to get the small house up to her security approval. It would have happened a lot faster except Tessa's Autobot friends kept stopping by. She hadn't minded the interruptions as much as she would have with any other client since she knew there was absolutely no way someone would be able to get to Tessa with one of the Autobots around.

She'd also learned to avoid the house on Saturday evenings and most Sunday mornings since Tessa's Autobot love interest was most likely there. She initially had trouble grasping the concept that the massive Autobot leader and the young mechanic could be in any sort of relationship other than that of mutual acquaintances until she'd stopped by the house late on a Saturday evening. The distinctive semi had been parked in front of the house. Kara had started to turn around to leave when she realized the interior windows seemed to have fogged up a bit in the colder night air. She had been staring in her rearview mirror when suddenly the massive truck suddenly shuddered and a brief blast of light came from it before it went dark. Sudden comprehension of what had been going on made her cheeks burn in embarrassment and she had left the area as quickly as possible. Tessa's blush when she had asked her about it later confirmed her suspicions and erased all doubts about the depth of the relationship.

While Kara respected Tessa's privacy she couldn't grasp how anything the younger woman could do would cause that intense of a reaction with the Autobot. She had been working with Tessa on some stretching and moves to get out of an assailant's grasp when she suddenly stopped and blurted out, "I know this isn't my business, but what did you _do_ to Optimus to cause that reaction?" She immediately felt bad for such a personal question and began to stammer an apology, "I'm sorry…..that wasn't any of my business…."

Tessa had laughed at her obvious discomfort, "I'm not the kiss and tell type and neither is Optimus but you need to realize the Autobots aren't just pieces of machinery that walk and talk. They _feel _just like we do. They have emotions like we do and can feel a touch as well. Some are even ticklish."

Kara hadn't known what to think about that but the knowledge wouldn't rest in her mind until she began to think of the Autobots in terms of being individuals and not giant alien robots. Of course Tessa's comments about them during their time together helped her begin to see them as unique individuals. She wondered if the younger woman knew just how much she spoke of her friends. Despite her normally guarded views on strangers Kara was beginning to accept the thought of the Autobots as potential friends.

There were times when her mostly solitary existence left her feeling a deep sense of loss. In those times the thoughts of "what if" plagued her. Those were the nights when the nightmares would happen and she would wake up sobbing uncontrollably. As much as she might wish otherwise, her past continued to haunt her. _He_ continued to haunt her! She could still hear his voice in the dark, _"__Shhhhh__…__you __know __I __love__you__…__..__"_ She couldn't bring herself to allow any man to touch her after him. The betrayal and pain ran too deep.

She wrenched herself away from her dark thoughts and put her tools away. She had to get the house locked up and be gone soon since Tessa was due to be home and probably wouldn't be alone. She cursed her carelessness when she looked up and saw the distinctive hood of the Valiant heading towards her on the street.

Throwing her tools carelessly on the front floorboard she rushed to the driver's seat and started the Mustang's powerful engine. She was pulling away from the curb and saw the younger woman glancing at her nervously as she approached the house. The reason for the nervous glance became immediately obvious when a silver Corvette Stingray suddenly pulled out from behind the Valiant and spend towards her trying to cut her off.

"Oh no, you'll have to try a lot harder than that." She smirked and stepped down on the accelerator. The Mustang shot forward away from the Corvette and she began to work a winding path away from the house hoping to avoid a confrontation with a protective Autobot.

When she checked her rearview mirror she gaped in shock. The Corvette had stayed right with her and was rapidly gaining. With a thrill of adrenaline she sat back into the seat and punched down on the accelerator, "Ok. Let's see what you got!"

The Mustang's engine seemed to roar a challenge at the Corvette as it nimbly surged away. Kara had designed its modifications from the wheels up and knew exactly what her baby could do. Despite the angry horn blaring behind her she grinned. They were going too fast for the Autobot to transform so he was going to have to catch her in his Corvette form. This was a challenge she relished!

Sideswipe blared his horn at the woman in the black Mustang in anger when she sped away from him again. There was no way a human piece of machinery, no matter how good looking it was, could ever outrun him. If she wanted to run he was going to show her that fuel was no match for energon. He decided not to com Optimus or the others to let them know he'd found the human female around Optimus' sparkmates' home again. He was going to catch this one and handle it himself.

As they wound through streets he kept a channel fixed on the local police radios. He knew their speeds and erratic driving would eventually get the local authorities attention and he didn't want to have to deal with them again. He kept up close to the agile Mustang and he felt a grudging respect beginning as the human woman held the obviously modified muscle car around tight corners and narrow passageways.

When they hit the edge of town and the road opened up he was utterly amazed when the Mustang seemed to suddenly fly forward in a burst of incredible speed. The speed loving Autobot let the energon race through his system as he sped up to follow. As they raced over the highway Sideswipe began to wonder just how long the Mustang could hold up at the speed they were going.

As much as he loved the feel of the road slipping by under him, Sideswipe really wanted answers. With another rush of energon he blew past the Mustang and once he was in front he began braking while swerving to keep her from passing. The sides of the road were too rough for her to get off and he knew he just needed to get her slow enough to transform if she wouldn't stop the car on her own. He hoped she just stopped since it would be a pity if he damaged the car if he had to stop it.

He wasn't too surprised when the woman brought the Mustang to a stop on the roadside and got out. Transforming out of his alt mode he moved to tower over her not caring at the moment if he intimidated her, "Why have you been hanging around that house?"

Years of training and countless confrontations couldn't have prepared Kara for the cold chill of fear as the massive Autobot glared down at her. She and Tessa had talked about what the younger woman planned on telling the Autobots about her and knew she was avoiding telling them anything until it was absolutely necessary. Now she wished that she'd insisted on her young client being honest about their agreement.

"I'm there because Tessa's hired me to help her." She wasn't going to lie about it. Tessa had told her how overprotective Optimus and the other Autobots were over her and she didn't want her second contact with one to be as negative as the first had been.

Sideswipe watched the human closely. His scanners and sensors weren't as fine tuned as Ratchets were, but he could still pick up a sudden elevation in breathing or heart rate if he paid close enough attention. Her heart rate and breathing were elevated from their driving and he could sense her apprehension with him, but there was a measured calmness about her.

"Why would she need to hire you?"

"Well, obviously with one of you guys around she's perfectly safe. But when she's away from you or at home alone she's exposed to whatever threat is out there." She didn't want to have to tell him everything on the side of a deserted highway and wished again that the young mechanic had chosen to be more forthcoming with their business relationship.

Her thoughts were interrupted as her cell phone rang. When she glanced at the caller ID she recognized Tessa's number. She held the phone up for the Autobot to see, "She's calling. Can you ….." she didn't finish as a charged air formed in front of her and a man with white blonde hair and brilliant blue eyes materialized in front of her.

Plucking the ringing cell phone from the stunned femme, Sideswipe answered, "Tessa, what's going on and what haven't you told us about?" He listened for a moment while keeping a steady eye on the femme, he learned her name was Kara, standing in front of him. After a few moments he sighed, "Ok. We'll be back in a few minutes but you better plan on telling Optimus. I'm not going to be there when he or Ironhide finds out about this."

He handed the phone back to Kara, "Tessa said she will explain everything when we get back to her house."

Taking back her phone Kara sighed, "I told her she should have told you guys about this." At least the Autobot wasn't glaring at her now. She had been studying the Autobot and his holoform while he had been talking on the phone since it wasn't every day that she could say she'd been chased down by a fifteen foot tall sentient robotic being.

The holoform confused her though. She hadn't had too much difficulty in understanding Ironhide's holoform since he had been a very muscular man with short cropped black hair and battle scarred face. This Autobot's holoform was a tall and lean built man with spiky white blonde hair dressed in some type of form hugging black pants and a silvery shirt.

Sideswipe hadn't missed Kara's stare even as discreet as she tried to make it. Despite the years of battle with the Decepticons his nature was still more carefree and playful and he didn't have it in him to pick on her. Tessa had been desperately frantic in her assurances that Kara was a new and trusted friend. With a casual smile he gave her a wink, "See anything you like?"

"What? You….I mean, I didn't mean to stare….I'm sorry…uh…"

With a carefree laugh the mech waved off her apology, "I was only teasing you and I'm not offended. We've gotten used to the shock our sudden appearance gives most humans." He leaned in closer and added in a half whisper, "Tessa screamed and fainted the first time she saw Optimus. We still haven't let him forget it!"

Kara couldn't help but smile at the thought of her cheerful young friend fainting at the feet of her now lover. It may not have been romantic at the time but she wasn't sure she would have fared much better if she hadn't seen numerous videos of the Autobots before meeting one in person.

Shaking herself out of her stare she returned the smile and extended her right hand for a handshake, "I'm Kara."

Having had the humans form of introduction explained to him in the past Sideswipe grasped the offered hand in a return shake, "Sideswipe" He glanced over at the meticulously polished Mustang, "Who did the modifications on your Mustang? Those old Mustang Boss' were great for handling but not so much in speed."

"Tessa knows a lot more about mechanics than I do, but I know enough to get the job started. The rest has been trial and error."

"It's been a long time since I've had such a good run. You handled it very well. If that car ran on Energon you might have beat me." There was no arrogance in his tone. He knew his abilities absolutely.

Kara smirked, "You sound so sure of yourself. Why don't we plan a time when we can get out of town and try it again? That is _if_ you can limit yourself to the normal specs of a gas engine."

"you're on!" Sideswipe knew of an old subdivision where the builder had put in numerous streets but had gone bankrupt before houses could be built. It was fenced to keep people out but it was never patrolled and a padlock was no match for him.

"We'd better get back to Tessa or she's going to think you decided to get rid of me." She got back into the Mustang and rolled down the driver's door window, "I'm going to head back a lot slower since I don't need the police looking for this car." She had extra weapons stashed in the car and she wasn't about to give some cop a reason to be touching or looking in her baby.

She turned around and headed back into town at a slower pace. When she checked her rearview mirror she saw that Sideswipe had changed back into the sleek Corvette and was following at a comfortable distance.

**OK everyone. I know that was due a long time ago. I found out that writing during the holidays just sucks! Sorry…..**


	6. Owning Up

**AN: Yes….Here I am apologizing again for the long time between chapters. To everyone - you have been the best and I'm so glad to hear that you've liked this story. **

Kara had found Tessa's attitude towards Sideswipe as she explained to the Autobot exactly how and why she felt she needed protection somewhat humorous. She could tell that Sideswipe wasn't as concerned about her being around Tessa as what was going to happen when the little mechanic had to tell Optimus what she had been hiding. Tessa was clearly using Sideswipe to practice her story and he was obliging her good naturedly.

Sideswipe hadn't missed Tessa's nervous hand movements and fidgeting and finally took pity on his young friend, "Tessa. Optimus won't care if you have Kara as a friend, personal protector or whatever. He will care that you chose to conceal her very significant presence in her life from him." He looked around the house and noted the front door lining up in the doorframe, the locks on the windows and a general lack of clutter. It was clear that Kara had been working with her in getting the house more secure.

"You should tell him tonight." Kara wanted to push the opportunity to get the truth out sooner rather than later. She could see the younger woman grimace and frowned, "If he's as understanding and supportive as you've made him sound to me then I would tell him the truth and admit you were wrong. He may not be happy about it but I would think he would understand."

"It's not just that. I promised myself that I wouldn't add to his responsibilities. That's why I hired you. I don't want him to worry about me so much."

Kara glanced over at Sideswipe and saw understanding in his brilliant blue eyes. Despite their differences in physical make up she was beginning to see similarities in their two species. The Autobots were clearly able to feel and express emotions as Tessa had told her. She just wondered to what degree.

Her attentions was brought back when the younger woman picked up her phone and dialed what seemed like an impossibly long number. At first she thought Tessa had to have somehow misdialed until the other woman smiled softly and spoke into the phone.

"Were you busy?" Kara couldn't miss the affection in her voice and wondered what it would be like to share that kind of connection with someone. Shaking herself out of _those_ kinds of thoughts she moved into the kitchen to offer her friend privacy.

She idly stared at the kitchen cabinets while noting that they looked like they had recently seen a good scrubbing. While Tessa could never have been described as a slob, she had only taken the barest measures possible in keeping up with housework. Kara's insistence on keeping clutter out of the way to prevent tripping should she need to move around in the dark seemed to have grown into a complete house cleaning.

Deciding to check the sticking lock on the window above the kitchen sink she braced her hand on the countertop to lean forward. An unusual texture under her fingertips made her pause and glance down at her hand.

There were crescent shaped grooves marring the otherwise smooth surface of the countertop. They were spaced apart in what looked like two sets of four grooves. As she bent closer to examine the grooves closer she lightly ran her fingertips over them. What could have dug into the countertop so deeply to make such evenly spaced and shaped grooves?

Her musing was interrupted by Sideswipe, "Well, she called him and he's on his way here right now." Instead of looking happy that the little mechanic had taken his advice to be truthful he looked worried.

"You look like that might be a bad thing."

The flashy Autobot ran his hand through his hair in a clearly learned habit from the human he had been spending so much time with, "If it's just Optimus then I'm not worried at all. They'll talk and even though I know he will be unhappy about her not telling him about hiring you. We all know you have know about us and from what we can tell you've done nothing with that information."

"You did an investigation on me?" That was a shock, but after a moment it made sense considering the circumstances of her initial involvement with Tessa. She could have easily been trying to set up the one human the Autobot leader was known to care about the most. It made sense even if it was unusual since she was normally the one doing the investigations on her clients and their respective threats.

Sideswipe grinned at her, "We did and it was amazing just how many times you've changed your name, business identity and anything else that could be used to find you. It took me forever to get through all that!" His complaint sounded more like a compliment even if it had baffled him about why she would have made the continuing attempts to hide her identity.

"I'm just worried that Ironhide will decide to come along."

"Why would he?"

Sideswipe chuckled, "Before Optimus made it so obvious that Tessa was his mate Ironhide had for some unknown reason decided that she was strictly under his protection. He can be grouchy and gruff but when it came to her he turned strict and pretty unreasonable."

His brilliant blue eyes seemed to glow with humor, "You know how much she loves to speed off in that little car of hers? Well before she got it fixed I used to love flirting with her. It was all fun since I knew there was no way she was going to take me up on any offers I made. If you know what I mean?"

Kara couldn't help the blush that crept up her neck into her face. She couldn't believe that she was being told that another of these alien, but completely amazing, beings that he's been _flirting _with the human mechanic on the base hired to help keep them repaired!

With a smirk at Kara's blush Sideswipe continued on, "I tried so many times to get her to hop in so we could go for a ride. I even offered to let her drive but she turned me down every time. It was a good thing too since when Ironhide heard about it he made sure our next training session sent me to Ratchet's loving care. Once you meet Ratchet you'll know just how awful that day was."

"When she got her car fixed she and Bumblebee decided to race across town. You've seen that there's just no way a fuel car can hope to keep up with our energon. She lost and they had a great time joking with each other about it. That was until Ironhide heard. It's a good think Bumblebee stays out of the base because I'm pretty sure Ironhide would have roasted his aft with his cannons. As it was he got so mad he literally picked up her car and put it up on the soldier's barracks. Scared them right out of the building!"

He couldn't suppress his laugh at Kara's look of disbelief, "You should have seen it. There was our little Tessa standing in front of the barracks yelling up at Ironhide to bring her can back down to her. Of course Ironhide wasn't about to give it back to her since he didn't want her drag racing or engaging in any such reckless behavior. They must have argued for a better part of the afternoon with her threatening to do some pretty creative modifications to him should he ever need to come in for service or repair. We were all having a good laugh until Lennox and Optimus finally stepped in and made him put her car back down."

Kara listened and tried to draw a mental picture of her young client yelling and trying to threaten a 26 foot tall alien being. It would have been hilarious especially knowing that said alien being had taken her car away to keep her from getting hurt. Without realizing it her mind wandered to a more distant past and she wondered what her life might have been if there had been someone to step in to make sure she had been safe. She could only imagine how wonderful it would feel to know that kind of security.

Shaking herself away from those thoughts she forced a smile, "So, if Ironhide shows up I should worry?"

"He's been pretty standoffish when it comes to most humans but he can be a real jerk at times. Optimus would keep him in line though. They've been friends for a very long time and Ironhide's been a very loyal soldier to his Prime."

Any additional questions she had were interrupted by the unmistakable sound of a truck pulling up and parking. Within moments a tall man with dark brown hair and those amazingly blue eyes came through the front door. She had to smile when Tessa practically threw herself into his arms and they embraced tightly. It was very obvious that the feelings they had for each other ran deep.

After a moment the little mechanic stepped back and motioned towards Kara, "Optimus, this is Kara and I hired her to help keep me safe when I can't be on the base or with one of you." She'd blurted out the last part and fidgeted as she waited for his response.

Kara had certainly had times in the past where she had been studied and assessed at a glance but that paled to the intensity of the stare from the Autobot leader. His look seemed to pass through her, almost as if he could look into the deepest levels of her soul. It was unnerving to say the least. She knew she had nothing to hide and she took a step forward and offered her hand in greeting, "I'm Kara Shepherd and to be a bit more precise she hired me after the attempted attack at the mall."

The Autobot leader looked down at his young mate and she could see the barest hint of disappointment in his gaze before he looked back to her and returned her greeting handshake, "I knew what our investigation revealed about you but not of your ongoing connection with Tessa." It was partly a gentle chastisement for the young mechanic and seeking clarification.

Tessa's honest nature spared Kara from having to explain as she proceeded to tell him everything from her approaching Kara at the mall to the work done around the house and driving and defensive lessons. She was very detailed and at the end Kara felt complimented by her praise even though she had only been doing what she'd been hired to do.

She could tell the Autobot leader was absorbing every word she had said and waited for the next and most obvious question, "You are charging her for this service of protection?"

"Yes, and for clarification I need to emphasize I can only protect her if I'm actually with her. The other part I'm teaching her is how to recognize trouble before she's actually in trouble and how to get her away to safety. I don't believe in having a client develop a long time dependence on dependence on me."

He was silent for a moment longer before he looked at Sideswipe, "You did the background investigation."

"Her client list was easy to validate and her last client sent a particularly favorable reference when I asked about her." At Kara's look of stunned anger he gestured towards Tessa, "This is our Prime's mate! We weren't taking any chances on a seemingly random or coincidental contact. The only thing I've noticed is the frequent name changes and the efforts you've made to keep you and you're business identity a secret."

There were now three sets of eyes looking to her for an explanation and a feeling of cold dread washed over her. It made her angry. Hadn't their_ investigation _on her proven to them that her jobs and treatments of her clients were well above board? If they had taken the trouble to contact her last client then they would have learned that her client's safety was always her highest priority and she devoted herself to that end. Schooling herself against and angry outburst she answered as calmly as she could, "I've changed my name, my home, and everything about me because I also needed protection in the past. I've done this to make sure my clients stay safe. It's just part of the profession." That was as much as she was willing to admit. They could either accept it or not.

The silence seemed to last forever before Optimus gave a deep sigh and looked back at Tessa. He pulled her close to him in a gentle but firm embrace, "I never wanted you to feel like you should fear for your safety. You should not have hidden this for me."

He kept her tucked into the safety of his arms as he looked back to Kara, "I do not wish to dictate to Tessa what she can and cannot do in her life. My concerns have been for her wellbeing and the security of the Autobots." He didn't add that her presence in their lives would probably cause the military to delve even further into her life. Whatever her past, it would eventually be uncovered.

Kara met his eyes with an unwavering stare, "I can certainly understand that and my intent has to only be involved when she cannot be at the base or with one of you. There's no way I could possibly do more for her safety with one of you with her."

The Autobot leader seemed satisfied with her answer and turned his attention to Sideswipe, "I'll remain with Tessa tonight and will escort her back to base in the morning." It was a dismissal.

Kara didn't miss the unspoken request for privacy. She gave Tessa a warm smile as she walked to the front door, "We'll be at the gym tomorrow for more of those maneuvers to break holds. Keep stretching during the day."

Sideswipe followed her out the door and followed her to her Mustang, "I usually follow her home at night unless Ironhide decides to blow a seal when he hears about this." He looked admiringly at the Mustang, "It might be fun to see you outrun his tired old aft with this baby though."

Kara couldn't suppress a laugh as his alt form seemed to crackle and buzz before it faded away and the Corvette roared to life to speed away. She wasn't sure if she'd been given a warning or a challenge. Either way the next few days would prove to be interesting.


End file.
